William Shatner — actor, comedian, pitchman, recording artist and author — turns 80 today. From Captain Kirk to an interpretive performance of "Common People," Shatner has had an accomplished and eccentric life. TIME takes a look at some of his best moments

Shatner Does ‘Common People’

William Shatner’s tongue-in-cheek spoken-word renditions of pop songs are so ridiculously bad that they’re actually (dare we admit this?) good. Take his cover of Pulp’s “Common People,” off his 2004 album Has Been. The Shatnerfied cover has guitar riffs, what sounds like dozens of backing vocalists and actual singing by British musician Joe Jackson. But then comes the theatrical powerhouse, shouting the lyrics over what would otherwise be an honest cover of the Britpop classic. Also, we just love the idea of Shatner going to the supermarket and watching roaches climb the wall.